He's supervillain Gru in Despicable Me 2, but Steve Carell is just plain sweet when he talks about his wife, his kids, and his sideline, selling candy.

REDBOOK: What did your kids [Annie, 11, and John, 8] think of the first Despicable Me?

They went crazy for it. I think it's the most proud they have ever been of their father. My son loved the minions [Gru's army of Twinkie-shaped sidekicks] so much—they were obviously his favorite part—and for the second movie, the directors had him come in and do a recording session of the minion voices. He did a great job.

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RB: Wow, that's awesome! A lot of times if your dad is doing something, it's not cool anymore.

Their friends actually get me to do the Gru voice. They can't get enough of it!

RB: When you meet fans, is there any pressure to be extra funny?

I think that people's expectations are extremely low because I'm not much of a joke teller. I think they're hoping that I'm a decent human being more than anything.

RB: Beyond all the movies you're doing, you also bought a 160-year-old general store in Marshfield Hills, MA. Do you feel like a general store owner?

Yeah, that's me. In my suspenders with the high-waisted jeans, you know, stocking the pickle barrel. Honestly, I just wanted to preserve the history of it. It seemed like an important little piece of that neighborhood that I didn't want to see change… [and] the candy is really good. The Mallo Cups!

RB: You've played a lot of bumbling guys who can't find love, but you've been married for 18 years.

I have been lucky. It took me a while to ask my wife, Nancy, out. We're both extremely shy people, and we danced around the subject for a number of months before we kind of stumbled upon a date invitation.

RB: You met doing improv. Had you ever dated someone unfunny, or was that a deal breaker?

Unfortunately, some of the deals weren't broken as soon as they should have been. Sharing a sense of humor is hugely important.

RB: Who's the funniest in the family?

I would definitely pick my wife. She's got this dry humor and a very advanced sense of irony, which I enjoy. But my son says we're all the funniest, because we make each other laugh, which is pretty accurate.